The Yearning
by DHerder222
Summary: Six warriors receive a mysterious message telling them to gather together...
1. The Yearning - 1

The Yearning  
  
The streets of Tokyo were busy at any given moment in the day. Even in the middle of the night, tired footsteps could be heard clamping down on the sidewalk, and the jingle of bicycles passing by was heard by the pedestrians. The middle of the day, when the sun was out, was the busiest time of the day, as thousands of walkers flooded the area. To the residents of the city, the hustle and bustle was a simple part of life, and just another aspect of everyday existence to deal with. Many tourists new to the area, however, were bombarded with thousands of different messages flowing into their eyes and ears, and could easily be overwhelmed by all the fantastic items that the huge city melded and created.  
  
Most of the children who were on the street were eagerly clasping onto the hand of an adult, looking forward to getting away from the wave of people that came in every direction. One youth, however, was marching soundly North without any aid from any adult. He had his eyes closed, in fact, and was munching on a piece of candy that he had swiped from a nearby vendor. He didn't appear to particularly care where he was going, and when his eyes were open, he was giggling at some strange thing that he could see on the street.  
  
After several minutes of apparent wandering, he began to grow bored and yawned. Just as he did so, he crashed into a suit-clad man near a fountain. The man fell to the ground onto his back, but the child only opened his eyes to see the damage he had caused. Immediately he walked over to the gray-haired man.  
  
"Sorry, old man, I didn't see you there." He grinned.  
  
The man shook his head and stood up. "No bother." He said gruffly, brushing the dust off his suit. As he looked down, he caught a good glimpse at the boy who had ran into him. What he saw startled him. The boy couldn't have been over ten years old, yet the boy didn't look hurt by the collision at all. He was wearing a strange sweater, which was red at the chest and the back, but was yellow at the sleeves. Even stranger was the fact that the boy's hat, which had been intentionally turned sideways, had colors that matched the shirt exactly, with red and yellow stripes running down the sides of it and covering his wild brown hair.   
  
The boy, noticing that the man was staring him, began to turn a little red, though the wide smile never disappeared from his face. "Well, if that's that, can I go, or is there something I'm supposed to do?" He asked, stuffing the candy wrapper he was holding into the right pocket of his jeans.  
  
"Hold on a second, boy." The man said, leaning over. He had noticed three red stars lined up in a row just above the boy's left cheek. "Are those stars...tattooed on?"  
  
The boy thought for a second, trying to think of what the best answer should be. "Uh...Sort of. The man who gave them to me didn't tell me exactly."  
  
The man was taken aback. "What's your name, boy?"  
  
"Rinku. What's it to you?" Rinku retorted, sticking out his tongue slightly. "Are all encounters people have meant to be so long and boring?"  
  
"Where are your parents, Rinku?" The man asked, ignoring the rather rude comments the boy had just made.  
  
Rinku pulled a piece of paper out from the backpack he was carrying. "They're at this place, and I'm supposed to meet them there in two hours. Can you tell me how to get to..." He examined the paper for a moment. "Kyota Mountain?"  
  
The man grunted, knowing that the boy was obviously lying. "That's it, boy. You're coming with me to the police station." He grabbed Rinku by the arm, and tried dragging him along. He was shocked when he saw the boy easily break free from his grasp.  
  
"Hey!" Rinku cried, still smiling. "I'm not following you. I have to find this Kyota Mountain place."  
  
The man bent over. "Now what would a ten year old boy need to be doing at that place?" He asked sternly.  
  
Rinku glared at him and thrust his fists into the year. "I'm not ten! I happen to be 138 years old!"  
  
The man furrowed his eyebrows. "What?"  
  
Rinku covered his mouth immediately after. "Oops...Hey, I hear my mom calling me. Gotta go!" Before the man could say anything, Rinku had disappeared into the crowd, lost in the masses. The man, now muttering to himself about the stupidity of kids today, simply walked off.  
  
The boy, once sure that he had rid himself of the meddlesome man, breathed a sigh of relief. "Whew," he said quietly. "Gotta remember about all these ningen. They hardly live past 70. So I guess I am about ten years old to them..." Rinku's mind wandered off as he counted ten off his fingers. As he finished, he shrugged. "Oh well." He prepared to stick the paper back in his bag, but he decided to read through it again. Finding a bench planted next to the entrance of a park, he sat down and thumbed through it.  
  
"Dear Rinku," he began, favoring the read it softly aloud so he could remember it better, "You have been invited to a very special meeting taking place at the summit of Kyota Mountain, about a one hour hike north of Tokyo, Japan. The meeting will take place on April 4th, 2004, anytime in the afternoon. You're guaranteed to be surprised by what we have in store for you." As he finished, he folded the paper back into the bag, laid back and sighed.  
  
This sucks, he thought to himself as he stared into the sky. It's nearing sundown, and I have no idea where to find this place. Even if I do find this place, it might just be a trap. Maybe I should just ditch this and go back to Makai...  
  
His thoughts were interrupted by the rumblings of an argument at a nearby cafe. Rinku tried to see what was going on, but was unable to see over the considerably taller heads of other onlookers, so he hopped off the bench and pushed his way through the crowd.  
  
"Mister, please!" He heard a woman shout at the top of her lungs. "We don't have what you're looking for, and you're causing a scene! Please leave!"  
  
Rinku arrived at the front of the crowd just in time to see a very familiar man swagger over the front of the counter. "Whadja mean you don't got no whiskey? This is a n-normal place, ain't it? An' normal places got whiskey!" The woman shrieked and ducked behind the counter, and several people in the circular audience began pushing the man around.  
  
Rinku looked on in shock for a moment before regaining thoughts. He stared at the man from head to toe. He was a very imposing man, standing over the vast majority of onlookers at what looked like 6'3" or so, and with very broad shoulders to match. He had a bright blue mohawk that stuck up another six inches or so, and his eyes were slurring around aimlessly. The man looked like he hadn't shaved in weeks. He was clad in a black leather jacket and fatigue-colored pants, coupled with a pair of boots with feathers adorned on the sides.  
  
Once the demon realized who the man was, he ran forward as fast as he could. "Chuu! Chuu!" He cried, running up to the mohawk-adorned man and wrapping his arms around his thighs, the highest up he could reach. "Where've you been all these years? It's been so long...Chuu?" Rinku looked up to see his friend staring down at him with half-open eyes.  
  
"Wuzzat thing on my leg?" Chuu muttered. "Get off..." He began swatting at Rinku, hoping to get him off. "Whoore you?" He bent down and looked at the child before recognizing him. After doing so, he rubbed his eyes. "Woah...Rinku, is that you?" He asked.  
  
"Yes!" Rinku shouted, exasperated. The two hugged again, and were about to begin talking when they heard the rumblings of the crowd behind them. Both grinned stupidly and looked at each other, trying to think of a good excuse.  
  
Finally Chuu opened his mouth. "Oh, uh...This here's my, uh...younger...cousin. Ain't that right, Rink?"   
  
Rinku nodded eagerly. "Right. So come on, cuz. Let's get out of here before you punch someone's lights out."  
  
The two noticed that many people in the crowd were giving them evil glares as they exited, but they paid as little attention to it as they could, and descended onto a dirt path in the nearby park. Once they were free from the ears of anyone nearby, Rinku allowed himself to chuckle at his towering friend.  
  
"So what was with the whole pretending to be drunk thing back there?" He asked, laughing.  
  
Chuu grunted. "You could tell I was faking it?"  
  
"Oh, come on." Rinku said, leaping onto Chuu's back and pulling out four of his yo-yos. "I've seen you drunk thousands of times. You think I can't tell when you're faking it or not?"  
  
The older demon laughed. "Yeah, I guess you're right. I don't know, that girl was giving me a hard time, and she was really fine looking, so I thought I'd just have a little fun with her, you know?"  
  
Rinku nodded, pelting Chuu's right knee with three of his yo-yos. "Yeah, I guessed that was what it was. A pretty girl. But oh well. How long has it been, pal? Six, seven years?"  
  
"Something like that." Chuu said. "When was the last time we saw each other? Back in the Makai Bujutsukai of 1998 or somethin'?"  
  
"I think so." Rinku said, hopping off Chuu's back. "That's the tournament Yomi won, isn't it?"  
  
Chuu nodded. "Yeah. So what've you been up to lately? Just been hanging out in Makai and that stuff?"  
  
"Sort of. I've been drifting in between Makai and Ningenkai for the last couple of years." Rinku shrugged. "What about you?"  
  
"The same, but I spent most of the time in Makai, just going to parties and getting destroyed. Speaking of that..." Chuu stuck a hand into his pocket and pulled out a small flask. "I forgot that I had some gin here." He twisted the top off and took three huge swigs of the drink. After he swallowed, he allowed a huge burp. "Ah, nothing beats good old booze." He grinned, tucking the flask away.  
  
Rinku winced. "You're not going to get drunk, are you?"  
  
Chuu shook his head. "You kidding? Ningen stuff don't get me drunk no more. Nowadays I can only smashed off demon drink."  
  
"Well, that's good...I guess. So what are you doing here in Tokyo? Did you get the same note I did?"  
  
"Note?" Chuu burped again. "You mean you got one of those too?"  
  
Rinku's eyes lit up. "Yeah! Pull yours out!" Both pulled the slips of paper out from their papers and exchanged them hurriedly. After taking a few minutes to read them, they looked at each excitedly. "This is exactly the same as mine!" The two called out in unison.  
  
"You mean you got the same note?" Chuu asked.  
  
Rinku nodded. "Yeah! What do you think it means?"  
  
Chuu shrugged. "No clue. I've never been to this Kyota Mountain, so I don't know nobody who's there. Do you?"  
  
"Nope. But the sun's getting ready to set, so we should hurry up if we're going to make it there in time."  
  
"Yeah. Maybe we can call out a taxi or a bus or something." The two hurried out of the park and waved down a passing cab, which took them several minutes to do so. The two got in the car, finding a angry young man driving the car.  
  
"Alright, where you two punks need to go?" The driver asked in an irritating voice. Rinku and Chuu looked at each other and shrugged.  
  
"Well...Can you take us to Kyota Mountain?" Rinku finally asked. The driver grunted. "I can take you to the base of that place, but there ain't no chance in Makai that I'm going all the way up."  
  
Chuu leaned forward. "We'll take it. And step on it. We're in a hurry here."  
  
"Yeah, yeah. Everyone's in a freaking hurry." The driver grumbled, revving the car into a very high speed. Rinku and Chuu watched silently as the car passed out of the enormous city and headed onto a nearly empty highway. The cab passed down the road for nearly half an hour, and the road they were on deteriorated into a simple dirt path.  
  
After several minutes of silence, Rinku began fidgeting in his seat. Chuu, who was beginning to feel the effects of the gin, was in a more relaxed mood. Rinku pulled out all eight of his yo-yos and began twisting them around each other in an effort to amuse himself. Several minutes passed before he grew bored of the game and began staring out the window, noting that it had begun to sprinkle.  
  
Another five minutes passed without note, and Rinku leaned forward. "Hey, pal, how much time before we reach the base of the mountain?"  
  
"Quiet, you little brat." The driver snarled. "We'll get to the mountain when I damn well feel like it."  
  
Rinku wrinkled his nose. "Geez, you don't have to get so..."  
  
"Woah, man! Rinku, look outside my window!" Chuu called out suddenly. Rinku jumped on Chuu's back again to get a better view.  
  
"What is it, what is it? I don't see..." Rinku's voice trailed off as he saw a single man walking along the same path they were traveling on. "Is that..."  
  
"Yeah, it is! Driver! Stop the car!" Chuu shouted.  
  
"Shut up! We don't have to stop for nothing! We don't to..."  
  
"Oh, pipe down." Chuu said, growing angry. He gave the driver a swift headbutt, knocking him unconscious in front of the wheel. With no one to control the vehicle, it steadily swerved off the road and eventually crashed into a tree. Rinku glared at Chuu, who turned beet red.  
  
"That probably wasn't a good idea." The smaller demon said bluntly. "But it doesn't matter. We gotta catch up with that guy so we can get a better look at him!"  
  
"Right!" Both exited the car and ran as fast as they could to catch up with the walking person they had seen. As they approached him, the man turned around to face them. His eyes lit up as soon as he did so.  
  
"Rinku! Chuu!" The man shouted, running towards them. He was a man of average height, with his blond hair arranged in a high-rise flat-top. He was dressed in a bright yellow muscle shirt and matching sweat pants, and he had no shoes on his feet as he walked. He embraced the two eagerly, and the three began talking in tandem, with no one able to understand the other.  
  
"Suzuki! God, it's been a long time! Where've you been? Rinku and I didn't see you at the Makai Bujutsukai back in 1998." Chuu said.  
  
Suzuki laughed. "That's because I haven't been in Makai. I've spent the last decade here on Ningenkai, trying to understand mankind better."  
  
Rinku frowned. "Why?"  
  
The young man shrugged. "Well, after Shishiwakamaru told me that I can't really hate humans until I learn more about them, I just decided to spend a little time in their world and see what it was like."  
  
"That's cool, I guess. What'd you find out, then?" Chuu asked half-heartedly, pulling his gin flask out again.  
  
"This place is pretty amazing." Suzuki continued, as though he hadn't heard Chuu. "I was in a place called Turkey last year. Beautiful. Probably the best place I've been to on Ningenkai. Yusuke and Genkai weren't kidding when they said this place had some wonderful places to visit."  
  
Rinku nodded anxiously, hoping to lead the conversation in a different direction. "So why are you here? Did you get a note like Chuu and I did?"  
  
Suzuki was taken aback. "Yeah, I got a message to come here today. How did...?" He started.  
  
"Don't bother asking. Both of us got the same message." Rinku said. He looked at the ground and began thinking aloud. "Hmm...If you got it, then maybe Touya, Jin and Shishi did, too."  
  
"Hey, maybe they..." Chuu's voice trailed off briefly. "...Maybe one of them sent these, and they're planning some sort of reunion."  
  
"Well, the only way we're going to find out is if we go there." Suzuki reasoned. "You two want to come with me?"  
  
"Sure!" Rinku glanced back at the totaled car he had been in a moment ago. "I don't think that thing'll help us much now, so let's go."  
  
The three friends made their way to the base of a hill, where they navigated their way for another hour. They made small talk along the way, but all three minds were more focused on what awaited them at the top of the mountain. After a while of climbing and hiking, they came to a seemingly endless flight of stairs. As they ascended the steps, they could tell a growing wind was coming in their direction. Paying no attention to it, they continued climbing the steps.  
  
After ten minutes of stair-stepping, Rinku wiped a sweat of brow from his forehead and took his cap off, letting his unkempt hair waft in the breeze. "Man, I'm so tired of all this climbing crap."  
  
Chuu chuckled. "Hey, Rink, yer starting to pick up some words from the ningen, you know?"  
  
"Really?" Rinku asked, surprised. "I guess since I'm hanging out with them, I'm starting to pick up some of their slang...dude." He grinned as he said the final word.  
  
"Yeah, it's the same with me." Suzuki said. "After being in so many different cultures and stuff, you start to pick up all the different ways they talk."  
  
"I guess." Rinku said. "I just..." Before he could continue, a huge gust of wind ripped through the stairway, knocking Rinku and Suzuki over.   
  
"Ah! Chuu, help!" Rinku called out. As Chuu ran over to help them to their feet, he could see the massive gust completely change directions and head their way again. Chuu was caught off guard, and the patch of wind blasted past him again. Still, Chuu remained grounded. He watched as the wind turned around yet again. This time Chuu was ready, however, and just as the gust began coming through, he ripped out a huge punch, hoping to connect with something. He was successful, and the gust of wind immediately disappeared. After Chuu was able to see again, he helped Rinku and Suzuki back up. The two took a moment to head back down some steps before they saw what lay on the ground.  
  
"What the..." Rinku stared, dumbfounded.  
  
"It's Jin!" Suzuki shouted. The three helped the demon to his feet, where he began rubbing his head constantly.  
  
"Eh..." Jin glanced at the three for several seconds before recognizing them. He was a demon of average height, with fiery red hair that resembled a fireball on his head, with a single, unicorn-like horn sticking out from the center of it. Large fangs could be seen in his mouth, and he had long, elf-like pointed ears. He was clad in a white, toga type of robe, with straps tied over both his shoulders to keep it on. He staggered to his feet and laughed timidly. "Your punch hasn't gotten any lighter, Chuu." He said.  
  
"Jin!" Rinku leaped into the air. "You could tell it was us the whole time?"  
  
"You bet!" Jin shook his head and elicited a huge smile. He hugged Rinku. "So how've you been, little guy? It's been a couple of years since I last saw you. What, back in 1996 or 97?"  
  
Suzuki chuckled, sticking his hand out to Jin for a firm handshake. "It seems like it's been a long time since any of us have seen each other. So where've you been during this time, Jin?"  
  
Jin shrugged, beginning to hover in the air. "You know, here and there. I've been pissing off both Koenma and Mukuro by traveling between all three words whenever I want. Those chases alone are enough to keep me happy. No one's caught me yet." He grinned. "Not even Hiei."  
  
Chuu arched an eyebrow. "Wow. That's something to be proud of."  
  
"Yeah. So did you all get that some message to go to this mountain, or am I..."  
  
"Yes!" Chuu, Rinku and Jin all shouted together. "We're all here for that reason, so let's get to the top!" Rinku called out.  
  
"Definitely." Suzuki said, joining the other three. "You know, if all four of us are here, that means Shishiwakamaru and Touya might be on their way too."  
  
Jin glared at him. "Duh." He grinned.  
  
Rinku laughed. "You've spent some time on Ningenkai too, haven't you, Jin?" He asked.  
  
"Yeah." Jin nodded. "Like I said, I've been all over the place. Europe, this Japan place, everywhere."  
  
The four continued for another half hour, still speaking in small talk, until finally they reached the top of the mountain. As they arrived, they saw a huge dojo place in front of them. The four looked at each other in curiosity.  
  
"What is this place?" Chuu asked, ready to nod off to sleep.  
  
"I don't know, but it's definitely pretty." Rinku looked at Jin and Suzuki. "Do either of you know this place from anywhere?"  
  
Both shook their heads. "It looks like it'd make a great place to train, though. It's isolated from everyone, it's certainly beautiful..." Suzuki touched a patch of moss gingerly.  
  
"Yeah..." Rinku said, staring at the sky. "Oh, look! I bet if we find the right spot, we can see the sunset."  
  
Jin's grin widened. "Well, what better place to go than the roof? Hop on, pal, and I'll get us there in no time." Rinku laughed and climbed on Jin's back. Jin darted several hundred feet into the air without any trouble and headed back down onto the roof of the dojo, where the two sat down to relax.  
  
Back on the ground, Chuu laughed. "Look at those, acting like a bunch of little kids."  
  
"Well, Rinku is pretty much just a little kid, remember?" Suzuki reminded him.  
  
Chuu thought for a moment. "...Oh yeah, you're right. Well, come on, Suz. Let's take a tour of this place."  
  
"Sure." The two circled around the dojo, Chuu paying hardly any attention. Suzuki, however, surveyed the surroundings with great interest, hoping to give them some clue as to why they were there. He found nothing that could help, however, save some beautiful flora that he was able to admire for a moment.   
  
After the two made a full revolution around the building, they were rejoined by Rinku and Jin. "Man, you guys missed a fantastic sunset." Jin piped up. I never get tired of those things. It's one of the advantages to living in the human world. Sometimes I..."  
  
He was interrupted by a voice below them. "Still haven't stopped talking in these eight years, Jin?" A cold voice asked. Four heads turned to see a short demon climbing up the final steps. He was wearing some sort of headband that allowed patches of his green hair to sprout through. He was wearing a dark blue over what appeared to be a chain-link upper piece of armor. He also had a blue toga, similar to that of Jin's, except that his only had one shoulder strap, going over his left shoulder.  
  
"Touya!" The four erupted together as they saw their friend approaching. Touya found himself the subject of a barrage of hugs and embraces as he arrived at the dojo. By the time he found Chuu was spilling what smelled like cheap beer on him, he recoiled.  
  
"Hey, Touya, where've you been? It's been way too long since we were in a tag team fight together." Jin chuckled.  
  
Touya allowed a tiny grin to crawl across his face. "I've been around. So what kind of party have I been missing up here? Did you all send me this note?" Touya asked, waving a piece of paper in front of them.  
  
All four shook their heads. "We all got the same one." Rinku replied, showing his own slip as proof.  
  
"Well, that only leaves Shishiwakamaru." Suzuki said. "Do you think he's the one that brought us all together?"  
  
"You kidding?" Chuu laughed heartily. "He's the least likely of all of us to even show up to this thing. What makes you think he'd be interested in seeing us again? It looked like he didn't even care the last time around."  
  
"Yeah, but if it he was invited, he'll come." Suzuki argued. "Trust me."  
  
"What makes you so sure?" Jin asked.  
  
Suzuki shrugged. "I've known Shishi a long time. I know it doesn't look like he cares about any of this sort of stuff, but he does. And knowing him, I wouldn't be surprised if he showed up really soon."  
  
Touya looked around briefly. "This is a very nice place outside. Have any of you gone inside to inspect it?"  
  
"No, we all just here ourselves." Chuu said, pulling another flask out of his back pocket and beginning to chug it down.  
  
"I see." Touya said. "Well, seeing that I've spent a good three weeks finding this place, I intend to find out why I did so." Touya pushed through the others and walked up to the front door. Before he could open it, however, he heard the other four behind him.  
  
"Wait, Touya! Don't you think we should all go in together?" Rinku asked.  
  
"Yesssh...That'd be good..." Chuu added.  
  
Touya shrugged. "Alright, fine...Chuu, look out!"  
  
Everyone turned their heads just in time to see Chuu tumble off a small deck and onto the grassy field below. The other four immediately swarmed around him to help him up, but it took several minutes to hoist him up. They finally did so by propping him up against the side of the wall.  
  
"Come on, Chuu!" Rinku said, slapping Chuu's face. "I thought you said you couldn't get drunk off human alcohol anymore!"  
  
"I lied." Chuu muttered.  
  
"Let's just leave him out here and tell him what we see inside. He's not going to miss much anyway." Touya grunted.  
  
"No way!" Jin shouted back. "We can't just leave our pal here in the dark. Hey, Suzuki, give me a hand here."  
  
Together, Suzuki and Jin picked Chuu up, each of them clutching a shoulder. Rinku, who was watching and feeling very amused, suddenly heard another pair of footsteps coming from the stairs. He skipped over to them and beamed when he saw whose feet they belonged to.  
  
"Shishiwakamaru!" He shouted as loud as he could, causing the birds in the nearby trees to scatter. Touya grinned, while Jin and Suzuki nearly dropped Chuu in surprise. They watched as a tall samurai demon walked onto the grassy field. He had blue hair that extended in the back as a ponytail, and also had it in bangs in his forehead. Two single strands of hair stuck up like antenna as well. He was dressed in a light gray kimono, and was barefoot. A huge sword clinked slightly at his side as he moved, and his face was looking down at the ground.  
  
"Did I crash some sort of family gathering?" He asked quietly. "No matter." He pulled a slip of paper out from his kimono. "I received this notice, so I am permitted to be at this location today."  
  
"Right, right, we all got one too. So where've you been these last few years?" Suzuki asked, hugging Shishiwakamaru briefly.  
  
"I've been traveling around Makai, honing my skills, perfecting my craft, beckoning at the call..."  
  
Jin groaned and nudged Suzuki. "Did you have to ask him that? Anyway, all six of the mighty Rokuyoukai are here, so let's check out the inside of the building."  
  
"Hey!" Rinku and Chuu shouted. "Rokuyoukai was the name of our team back at the Ankoku Bujutsukai!" Rinku corrected.  
  
"Yeah, but the name means "Six demons," so I thought it fit us pretty well, too. Come on, don't you think so? It's a really good name, after all. I like it, anyway."  
  
Chuu shrugged. "I guess. Still..."  
  
"Must we stand out here and argue all day?" Touya sighed. "You are all free to, but I am going inside." No sooner had he said that when his five friends joined at the front door. Suzuki knocked timidly, but no one answered.  
  
"Doesn't look like anyone's there." He analyzed.  
  
"Genius thought." Shishiwakamaru groaned. "Is the door locked?"  
  
Chuu checked, and was surprised to find that he could turn the knob of the door. "No, it ain't. Should...should we go in?" He asked.  
  
"Yeah, go in!" Rinku cried, pushing Chuu forward into the room. The six walked in calmly, and found themselves in a room that was almost completely encased in darkness, the only light coming from candles that been placed on ledges on the walls.  
  
The six stood together in darkness for several minutes, each unsure of what to do. Finally Rinku gathered the courage to speak. "Are we supposed to be doing something now?" He asked.  
  
"How should I know?" Touya hissed.  
  
"I didn't ask you." Rinku returned.  
  
"Well, it was my shoulder you nudged, so I assumed that you were referring to..."  
  
"Gentlemen, I welcome you all to this humble abode." A voice towards the opposite end of the room said. Six heads turned to see a beacon of light emit from apparently nowhere and spotlight on a figure that had appeared hidden until that moment. The six were all in shock when they saw who it was, and all six mouths were capable of saying only one word.  
  
"Kurama!?" 


	2. The Yearning - 2

The Yearning - 2  
  
The six visitors stood, mouths agape at the figure who stood in front of them. He was a distinctly feminine male, with long, flowing hair that dangled in locks over both of his ears. He was of average height, and was wearing a simple white T-shirt and black sweat pants. He looked to each of them and smiled, taking the opportunity to kneel down on a cushion that he had placed on the floor.  
  
He was nearly knocked over by the flush of his friends, who engaged in a continuous mixture of hugging, hand-shaking and otherwise friendly notions of welcome. After each of them calmed down, Kurama beckoned to six blue cushions, similar to his own, that had been placed in a row.  
  
"Welcome to my home, all of you," He said, smiling. "Please, have seats. You probably have many questions for me."  
  
"Yeah, like, 'Did you send out these notes'?" Rinku asked, pulling his note out as he did so. The others followed suit after him.  
  
Kurama nodded. "Yes, it was I who sent those to you. I had Botan and Hiei looking all over the place to track all six of you down, but I think it'll be worth it that I did so." He grinned.  
  
Jin laughed. "So that's how you were able to find us! You had some messengers helping you out, eh?" He flashed a toothy grin to Kurama, who nodded in turn.  
  
"Indeed. There was no way I would have been able to find you all without their help. Botan looked all over Ningenkai, and Hiei just added you all in his rounds of Makai. I hope I didn't intrude on any pressing business."  
  
Rinku laughed. "Of course not! So what have you been up to lately, Kurama? Have you stayed in Ningenkai this whole time? None of us have really seen you around, I don't think."  
  
Kurama nodded. "Yes, after we last parted ways, I spent six years in a human university to receive a degree in botany. After that..."  
  
"Botany?" Shishiwakamaru asked in his best attempt to sound uninterested. "What is that?"  
  
"It is the study of plants." Kurama explained. "After I finished, I decided to put my new knowledge to the test, and spent a few years journeying all over this country of Japan, studying its plant life. I put all notes together and hope to publish it soon."  
  
"A book? Is that the kind of book that you read?" Chuu asked, tossing both of his empty flasks on the ground.  
  
Jin groaned and covered Chuu's mouth with his hands. "Don't mind this idiot." His eyes began wandering around the dark room. So are you living in this place now? Is this your home?"  
  
"Yes, the local humans were under the impression that this mountain was haunted by demons, and that there was a beautiful house at the top that was abandoned. After a bit of...exterminating, I was able to claim this place as my home. The humans don't know of this, so they leave me alone." Kurama laughed.  
  
Rinku elbowed Chuu. "That's why that crazy ningen wouldn't give us a ride all the way up the mountain." He said quietly.  
  
"That's fantastic, Kurama." Suzuki said, glancing around the room as well. He turned back to Kurama. "So how are Yusuke and Kuwabara and Hiei and everyone else doing? Are there all still doing well in their lives?"  
  
The six saw Kurama look down slightly. "Most of us are doing well. Yusuke and Keiko were married several years ago, as were Kuwabara and Yukina." He chuckled a bit. "We were going to invite you all to the weddings, but we could never find you."  
  
Jin's eyes widened. "Yusuke and Kuwabara...Those fools actually got married? Wow." He said, contemplating the thought. "It seems strange to think of Yusuke as a married man, now."  
  
Touya looked at Jin, surprised. "You honestly didn't think that they'd get married to Keiko and Yukina sooner or later? It has been a decade, after all." He looked to Kurama. "What of Hiei? I had heard rumors that he and Mukuro were planning marriage soon as well."  
  
Kurama laughed. "It seems that everyone wants Hiei and Mukuro to get married except them. But no one is doubting their love, and I expect that it'll happen soon enough. Those two will take a long time to admit their feelings for each other, though." He smiled again. "Did any of you hear of what happened at last year's Makai Bujutsukai?"  
  
The others nodded, prodding Kurama to continue. "They actually met in the finals, so there was obviously no point in them fighting since they were on the same side. The crowd was quite disappointed to have duel winners for the first time."  
  
An owl could be heard hooting outside as everyone laughed. Rinku sighed. "Well, that's good. What of Genkai? How is she?"  
  
Kurama frowned. "Unfortunately, Master Genkai passed away two years ago. She is now in the spirit world."  
  
A pin could be heard dropping in the room. The others looked at Kurama in surprise. Jin was having trouble biting back tears. "Master Genkai is...dead?"  
  
"Sad but true." Kurama said. He waved a hand in front of the others. "Please don't fill your hearts with sorrow. Genkai was over eighty years old when she left us. She lived a wonderful life, and Koenma had better be rewarding her well for it."  
  
An awkward silence followed for several minutes, as Kurama realized it would be best to let the others soak in the information. Suzuki finally spoke. "Did she go peacefully?"  
  
Kurama smiled and nodded. "Yes, in her sleep, with all her friends at her side."  
  
"That's good." Rinku managed to blurt out. Another moment of silence ensued, finally prompting Kurama to continue. He breathed heavily, and began speaking again. "In any event, you're all probably wondering why I've summoned you all here. Would any of you like some tea before I begin?" He asked.  
  
Shishiwakamaru shook his head vehemently. "Just get on with the matter of why we're here."  
  
Kurama laughed. "I can see you haven't changed in this past decade, Shishiwakamaru. Very well. I shall begin explaining now. You see..."  
  
"Is Makai...Is Makai in trouble again?" Chuu asked, beginning to stutter. Suzuki smacked his cheek. "Fool!" He cried. "Kurama was just able to tell us why we're here! See if you can shut up for five seconds!"  
  
"Thank you, Suzuki." Kurama said. "As I was saying, it all began..."  
  
"There, it's been five seconds!" Chuu laughed again. He was met with five blows to his hard head immediately after, and he tumbled onto the floor of the dojo, apparently content with his resting place.  
  
Kurama only looked on, amused. "Perhaps it would be best if he took a little rest, I suppose. Very well. As you all know, next year is 2005, and time again for another Ankoku Bujutsukai. Have any of you been keeping track of that tournament, and who's been winning?"  
  
Touya closed his eyes and shook his head. "No, none of us have really been in the same place for too long to hear things of that nature."  
  
"I see." Kurama nodded. "Well, Team Urameshi has been the victor for the past three tournaments, in 1993, 1997 and 2001..."  
  
"Wow!" Jin exclaimed, starting to hover in the air. "That's some accomplishment, Ku! I don't think any team's won three teams in a row! You oughta be proud of yourselves, ya know!" He said, managing to suppress a small yawn as he spoke in the air.  
  
"Yes, we're all happy we've been able to win. And we're going to be entering the tournament again next year. Unfortunately, it will be Team Urameshi's final entry into that tournament."  
  
Chuu got back on his knees. "W...Why's that?"  
  
"Yes, why ruin such an excellent winning streak? You could probably be the victors for several more years." Touya added.  
  
A small drizzle began falling down in the night sky outside. Kurama shrugged. "Several reasons, I suppose. I imagine that the audience is getting tired of seeing us holding the trophy every time."  
  
Shishiwakamaru grunted. "That's no reason to give up. If you're the best, you could continue showing it."  
  
"It's not just that. Yusuke has expressed interest in settling down with Keiko as well. And then there's the problem with Kuwabara."  
  
"What problem?" Suzuki asked. "Is he in poor health?" The others looked to Kurama in alarm.  
  
"No, no, not at all. You see..." Kurama thought for a moment. "When we first entered the tournament, the team was Yusuke, Kuwabara, Kurama, Hiei and Genkai. Now that Genkai is gone, only four of us are left. And after this tournament, there will be just three of the original team members left, and..."  
  
"What do you mean?" Suzuki asked, narrowing his eyes.  
  
"What I mean to say is that Kuwabara is 28 years old now. In another four years he'll be 32, an age that's really too old for humans to be putting their lives at such an alarming risk. Kuwabara's at the peak of his power right now, after all."  
  
Rinku shrugged. "So? Why should that stupid ningen keep you from fighting?"  
  
Kurama sighed. "Kuwabara has been a tremendous partner and friend all these years. None of us - Not even Hiei - really want to continue participating in the tournament if Kuwabara's not on our team. I'm sorry if you don't understand that, but we're all happy with being four-time champions and nothing more."  
  
"We understand, Kurama." Touya nodded. "But what does that have to do with summoning us? Did you want us to be in the audience for the tournament? Because if you do, we'd love to."  
  
"Yeah!" Jin laughed, flying in the air hurriedly. "We'll see Yusuke get to tear everyone to pieces again! That'd be great!"   
  
Kurama closed his eyes and smiled. "It's so good to know that none of you have changed." He said to himself. Looking up at the air, he extended his arms. "Calm down, Jin. That's not exactly what I had in mind."  
  
"Then what?" Shishiwakamaru asked a bit impatiently.  
  
"We all would be honored if the six of you would enter the tournament together. As a team, I mean." Kurama added quickly.  
  
"What!?" Kurama was met with six surprised stares. "It's been a full decade since we were last in the tournament!" Rinku exclaimed.  
  
Kurama nodded. "Exactly, and that's why we want you all to enter again. Seeing that this is our last time in it, Yusuke and all of us would love the opportunity to fight with you all again, one team against another." He smiled.  
  
Jin and Chuu looked at each other, grinning. "The chance to fight Yusuke again? Sounds like a good idea to me." They said in unison. "Count us in!" Jin said, facing Kurama.  
  
"I shall." Kurama grinned. He turned to Rinku next. "What about you, Rinku? I know Kuwabara's itching for a rematch with you."  
  
Rinku stuck out his tongue. "That stupid ass doesn't stand a chance against me, but I'll go along, just so I can crush him into the ground again." He said, whipping out his yo-yos and twirling them around.  
  
"That's not exactly how I remember things happening, but it's fine nonetheless. Touya? I'd be honored to fight you again." Kurama said.  
  
"And you shall." Touya said slowly, forming two swords of ice on his hands. "And this time I intend to win."  
  
Kurama laughed. "We will see." He looked to the final two. Shishiwakamaru had his eyes closed, apparently in deep thought, and Suzuki was playing with different rainbow colors in his hand. "Are you two interested in fighting again? I know that neither of you will be able to get a rematch with Genkai, but..."  
  
Suzuki looked up. "That's no matter. If Shishiwakamaru wants to fight, I won't be the only person not to. What do you think, Shish?"  
  
"Don't call me that." Shishiwakamaru snapped. "You know full well that I prefer to go by my full name, Shishiwakamaru, and nothing else. And to you, Kurama, I am undecided." Suddenly Shishiwakamaru's body began dissipating and shrinking. After a few seconds his body had shifted into that of a strange demon creature, somewhat resembling his normal form. Equipped with fangs and clawed feet, the creature was dressed in a tiny white kimono. It fluttered onto the shoulder of Suzuki and glared at Kurama. "Very well. I'll participate, but only because all these buffoons are partaking in it as well. I must ask a question, though."  
  
Kurama nodded. "Yes, what is it?"  
  
"What's the point of that tournament, anyway?" Shishiwakamaru asked, a bit angered. "After all, we have the Makai Bujutsukai now. It seems pointless to enter a tournament that's pretty much worthless."  
  
"It's not worthless." Kurama said. "It's like...Well, do you know the two most popular tournaments for humans to participate in?"  
  
"One's the one where all the guys hit that stupid little ball all over the place, right?" Jin asked. "I never understood that game."  
  
"Yes, they play football at one of them, called the World Cup. The other tournament is called the Olympics. Are you familiar with both of those games, Shishiwakamaru?"  
  
Shishiwakamaru sighed and nodded. "Of course, but what do those have to do with anything?"  
  
"The Makai tournament is like the Olympics in that everything rests on just yourself to win. With the World Cup, as well as the Ankoku tournament, there is a team, working together. With that regard, the tournaments are quite different from each other, each with their own merits. Do you see?"  
  
"I suppose. Still, I think it's pointless. But in any case, I shall join, if just to please everyone else."  
  
Kurama laughed. "I understand completely." He clasped his hands together. "Well, this is excellent. I was truly hoping that you would all fight in this Ankoku Bujutsukai. It will make Yusuke very happy when I tell him."  
  
"Who is going to be on your team, now that Genkai is no longer with us? They demand that you have six members on your team."  
  
"We're still unsure. Hiei was considering asking Mukuro to fight with us, and I understand Yusuke might even recruit his pet, Puu. That's certainly be interesting to see in a fight."  
  
The others nodded. "Where is Yusuke now, anyway?" Jin asked, eyeing Chuu to see if he was still awake. Smacking his face around did no good, and Jin looked back at Kurama.  
  
"He and Keiko are running a ramen house in their hometown. It used to belong to Keiko's parents, in fact."  
  
"A ramen house, eh?" Rinku mused. "We should all go over there and crash it sometime." He laughed. "I'd eat some human food if it meant being able to visit with those two again."  
  
Kurama smiled. "That's a possibility, considering where you're going to be training. It's not too far from Yusuke's home, only an hour or so."  
  
"What do you mean?" Touya asked. "You already arranged a place for us to train for the next year? Sounds like you expected the answer we gave you about being in the tournament."  
  
"Well, not exactly." Kurama said, blushing slightly. "You see, this is a place you've all spent time in before."  
  
"Where?" All six asked together.  
  
"Master Genkai's dojo. You see, before she died, she asked all of us to take care of her home for her. Now that she's gone, no one lives there, her gardens are beginning to grow unkempt, and..."  
  
Jin began laughing uncontrollably. "I get it. You want us to be caretakers at Master Genkai's for the next year, don't you? Seeing that we're free labor and everything."  
  
Kurama laughed. "I suppose if you want to call it that, than yes. But all of us continue to visit the dojo. You wouldn't be isolated from the world at all. I can take you all there, if you'd like."  
  
"How?" Suzuki asked. "We're hours away from the dojo. We'd have to climb down the mountain and everything.  
  
"Not really. It's actually quite easy for me to take you there. All you six have to do is close your eyes and focus your energy upon me. It's a little trick I learned while I staying with Yomi a few years ago. Teleportation isn't as hard as it seems." Kurama said.  
  
Rinku and Jin looked at each other uncomfortably. "Well, if you say so, Kurama." They said. One by one, the six closed their eyes and began thrusting their power in Kurama's direction. The red-haired kitsune, in turn, closed his eyes as well and began manipulating the waves of matter around them.  
  
Suddenly all of them could begin to feel themselves growing lighter. Rinku snuck a peek momentarily and could see that his entire body was actually turning invisible. In a bit of shock, he closed his eyes again.  
  
Suddenly the seven could all feel themselves moving. Alarmed, all but Kurama opened their eyes and found themselves hovering around in some sort of portal, coating in shades of dark blue and dark gray matter. Though all six immediately felt uncomfortable in the situation, only one felt it necessary to speak.  
  
"Ahh!" Chuu let out a bloodcurdling scream. "Where are we? Stop this! I'm gonna die here! Please!"  
  
Kurama winced, though he closed his eyes. "Relax, Chuu. We're just in a parallel dimension I temporarily created. As soon as we leave, this place will disappear forever. So all you have to do is close your eyes and relax."   
  
In hesitation, the six closed their eyes again, hoping they wouldn't fall in some dimensional pit or something. A minute or two passed in total silence, until the six heard Kurama speaking. "We're back at the dojo. It's okay for you all to open your eyes now."  
  
Chuu was the first to, and rubbed them immediately after he did. He looked around, and instantly recognized the main living room of Genkai. The six bunk beds that they had used were even visible in the next room.  
  
"Da-amn!" He cried, walking around the room. "This place hasn't changed a bit!" He shouted out.  
  
"Yeah!" Jin said, flying in the air to move around easier. He looked out one of the back windows. "Oh yeah! There are all those mountains we used to train on! And there's the swamp that's filled with spirits! Man, this feels so good to be back here!"  
  
The others began poking through the various rooms to help jog their memory. Rinku immediately ran to the Genkai's arcade and began playing a spaceship game. Chuu collapsed on his old bed, hoping to avoid throwing up from the alcohol. Shishiwakamaru hovered out of the room to rest in a tree nearby, leaving Kurama, Touya, Jin and Suzuki in the room.  
  
After looking over the dojo for a moment, Touya nodded as well. "Yes, it looks as if we've been here all this time. Kurama, have you been the only one taking care of this place the whole time?"  
  
"Not at all." Kurama shook his head. "Kuwabara and Yukina only live a short distance from here, so they come up every once in a while."  
  
The conversation was cut short by some shouting outside. "Who's in there? I'm gonna bust all your asses!" A voice hollered on the other side of the front door. Kurama laughed.  
  
"Speak of the devil. Excuse me, friends." The three watched Kurama open the front door. A very tall man almost burst down the door as he did so. He was about the same height as Chuu, with incredibly broad shoulders to match. His light brown hair was arranged in curls across the top of his head, and he was wearing a dark blue jacket and jeans. He was carrying a broom in one hand as he eyed the people in the room.  
  
"Kurama, what's going on? How did these guys get here?" He asked in a very gruff voice, closing the door behind him.  
  
Kurama rolled his eyes. "Relax, Kuwabara. I just used my teleport spell to get some old friends back here."  
  
"Old friends...?" Kuwabara's voice trailed off as he began to recognize the three men in the room. A light bulb seemed to go off in his head suddenly. "Woah!" He cried. "Those are the guys from the tournament!"  
  
"In the flesh!" Jin cried happily.   
  
"Geez, where have you three been all this time?" Kuwabara asked, running up to each of them and hugging them all. "It's been, what? Twelve years since we last saw each other?"  
  
"Something like that." Suzuki said, struggling to get break of Kuwabara's bear-like hold. "Uh, Kuwabara, you're..."  
  
"Oh, sorry." The taller man said, releasing his grip. He turned to Kurama. "So why'd you bring these three here? Are they going to be taking care of the dojo? Because I'm getting kind of tired of sweeping up every weekend!" He said.  
  
Kurama blushed. "Yes, Kazuya, they will be spending time here. And not just these three. Shishiwakamaru, Chuu and Rinku are here as well. You see, they're going to be entering next year's Ankoku Bujutsukai, and..."  
  
"They are? Awesome!" Kuwabara said. Another light bulb went off, however, and he turned back to Kurama. "Wait a second. Did you say that little punk Rinku is here, too?"  
  
"Somebody call my name?" Rinku asked, skipping his way out of the arcade and into the main room. As soon as he saw Kuwabara, he stopped and began laughing. "Ooh, look who it is! The guy who swore that he was going to beat me during the tournament all those years ago!"  
  
Kuwabara blushed. "I would have done it, too, if you hadn't been so cheap with those damn yo-yos. And you can bet your ass that if we fight again, I'll win! I've been practicing!"  
  
"That's a good one." Rinku snickered. "You seem to forget that out of all of us, I'm the only one here that actually won his fight. And it was against you." He pointed a tiny finger at Kazuya mockingly.  
  
Kurama stepped in between the two, hoping to nip any possible confrontation in the bud. "That's enough, both of you. Any fight the two of you will be had next year. It'd be very inappropriate if you fought before then."  
  
Kuwabara grunted. "I guess you're right. Well, listen, Kurama, I'd better get back home before Yukina starts worrying about me. You know how she gets if I'm gone too long and all that, so..."  
  
Jin smiled. "So you tied the knot with that girl after all? That's good, considering all the crap you were going through for her back then."  
  
"What do you mean?" Kuwabara asked. "Yukina and I have been in love with each other from the very beginning. It's totally foolish to deny our eternal, undying love for each other, and..."  
  
"Do you ever stop talking?" Jin asked playfully. Kuwabara started to say something, but he realized that Jin was just joking and smiled.  
  
"And in any case," Touya began, "I think it's safe to say that, had she not appeared, Reishyo would have pummeled you into the ground. You might have even lost your life." He sat down on the ground.  
  
Kuwabara shrugged. "Maybe. But even so, I like to think that I did pretty good in there. After all, I was the only human in the entire damn tournament."  
  
"Don't worry, Kazuya. We all know that." Kurama said, resting a hand on his shoulder. "You go ahead and head on home. I'll take care of things from here on out, alright?"  
  
Kuwabara nodded. "Sure thing." He made his way to the front door of the dojo, turning around and waving as he did so. "It was great seeing all of you again, even you..." He allowed himself to point a finger at Rinku. After he did so, he opened the door and headed outside.  
  
Rinku blew a raspberry at him just as he left. "Hope you aren't eaten by some hungry demon, stupid ningen!" He called out before returning to the arcade.  
  
As the two doors slammed shut, Kurama glanced at Jin, Suzuki and Touya, all of which were looking around the room. "Well, you guys, perhaps I should be off as well. You can all spend the next couple of days getting used to the place, and I'll return during the weekend to see how your training's going. Is that okay?"  
  
"What, you mean we don't get a trainer this time?" Jin asked. "I thought you'd be helping us again or something."  
  
"Yes, the sessions with Master Genkai were very helpful. They gave us all tremendous power." Suzuki added.  
  
Kurama laughed, noting that Shishiwakamaru had rejoined them in the room. "I'd help if I had the time, but as it is right now, I have a job in the human world that prevents me from doing so."  
  
"Hey!" Shishiwakamaru interrupted in his tiny voice. "Who was that leaving just now? Was that one of Yusuke's friends?"  
  
"Yes, that was Kazuya. I believe you beat him last time you two met." Kurama said as Shishiwakamaru fluttered over to Suzuki. He checked a watch he was wearing. "And with that, I had best be off. You have no idea how happy I am that you've decided to accept my invitation. Yusuke will be very surprised."  
  
"Surprised?" Touya asked. "You mean he doesn't know about all you asking us to join or anything?"  
  
Kurama shook his head. "None. He had mentioned to me that he really wanted to see all of you again, but that's it. This is something of a gift." He said, firmly shaking each of the four's hands. "Tell Rinku and Chuu that I said goodbye, alright?" He asked Suzuki. "I wouldn't want them to think I'm impolite."  
  
"Sure thing." Suzuki said. "Take care of yourself, Kurama." Kurama smiled and nodded. He headed out the front door and closed the door behind him. The four looked at each other, each sighing a breath of relief.  
  
"What a day. So much has happened, I feel like my head's gonna burst or something." Jin sighed, lying face-up on the ground and staring at the roof.  
  
"Indeed. In the span of just a couple of hours we've agreed to enter another tournament and train for it for an entire year." Touya said.   
  
"Don't remind me." Suzuki groaned. "But all of the training will be worth it if we're able to meet Yusuke's team in the tournament. I don't even care if we see them first or last, I just want to be able to fight them."  
  
Jin shook his head. "Not if, Suz. It's when." He emphasized the final world of the sentence. "And until then, we've gotta train and train and train."  
  
The four heard a door open and shut, and saw Rinku enter the room, fluttering his yo-yos. "Stop saying such things, Jin. I don't have to spend fourteen hours a day honing my skills again, like we had to do before."  
  
"Well, how else do you expect to beat Yusuke?" Suzuki asked. "He's going to be undergoing the exact same training, so if we want to beat him, and Kuwabara and Kurama and everyone else, we must train."  
  
"You're right, of course." Touya said. "Training is the very way for us to accomplish that goal."  
  
Jin sighed again. "It's just a real bummer knowing that we won't be able to visit Makai for an entire year."  
  
"Oh, come on." Rinku said, sitting down next to him. "Do you really have anything that important to do there? If you do, maybe you should go down tomorrow and get anything done."  
  
"No, it's not that." Jin said. "But I did kind of form my own crew of demonlings to train. It's kind of fun to watch all those little kids become killing machines." He laughed to himself.  
  
Shishiwakamaru shook his head. "So that's where you've been. Well, there's not much time left in this human day. Is there anything any of you want to do?"  
  
Rinku shrugged. "I'm kind of hungry, but I guess it can wait until the morning before we eat. I'm not in a big hurry to eat human food, anyway. A lot of it tastes really funny and weird."   
  
In the silence that followed, all five could hear the loud snores coming from Chuu in the bedroom. Jin and Suzuki looked at each other and grinned. "He really seems to be enjoying himself." Jin said.  
  
"Apparently." Suzuki said. He turned to Rinku. "Did he really used to get drunk all the time?"  
  
"All the time." Rinku said. "A typical day would go like this when we'd be training: Zeru, Roto and I would begin training. Chuu would be with us until the afternoon, where he'd start drinking. By the end of the day he'd be at a brother or something, and we'd have to bring him back to our place. It got really annoying." Rinku said, yawning.  
  
Touya looked on in silence, until Rinku was finished. He looked to the other four. "Well, it appears that for the moment, he has the right idea. Perhaps we should take his lead and get some rest."  
  
"What makes you say that?" Shishiwakamaru asked. "We're not doing anything particularly stressing tomorrow."  
  
"Maybe not tomorrow." Touya said. "Still, I'm feeling a bit strange right now. Almost as if I can get a feel from the building itself. And besides, I think it can be agreed that this is the last time this place is going to be quiet for a very long time."  
  
The five looked to each other, each seeing if what Touya had said was true. As they looked on in silence, each person's mind began to fill with possible events that would happen in the coming year. After several minutes, the five all headed into the bedroom together, in silence. They each climbed their way into their respective beds and laid down to rest. It took several minutes, but eventually the six let themselves sleep into sleep. 


End file.
